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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/23935891">Battle Scars and Laughter</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/RainbowOmens/pseuds/RainbowOmens'>RainbowOmens</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Thunder In Our Hearts [1]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Canon-Typical Violence, Canonical Character Death, F/F, F/M, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, LGBTQ Character, LGBTQ Themes, Manipulative Albus Dumbledore, Marauders Era (Harry Potter), Minor Character Death, Multi, Not Pottermore Compliant, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Squibs</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-05-14</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-05-26</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-02 23:00:37</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Mature</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>3</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>9,936</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/23935891</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/RainbowOmens/pseuds/RainbowOmens</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>James Potter introduces himself to the girl climbing the shelves at Flourish and Blotts and sets in motion a friendship that will change the course of history. 1971-1981.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>James Potter/Lily Evans Potter, Marlene McKinnon/Original Female Character(s), Original Character/Original Character, Sirius Black/Marlene McKinnon, Sirius Black/Original Female Character(s)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Thunder In Our Hearts [1]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/1725415</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>3</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>23</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Fate Intervening</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <h4>Flourish and Blotts, 1 August, 1971</h4>
<p>“Hi, I'm James. What're you doing?”</p><p>The blonde girl climbing the shelves jumped at the sudden noise and fell to the floor, nearly bringing the entire bookshelf down with her. “I was trying to get my copy of Magical Theory before you scared me.”</p><p>“Where’re your mum and dad? Can’t they help?”</p><p>The girl shifted on her feet, eyes trained on the pile of books on the floor. “They’re not here.”</p><p>“Did they go to another store? ‘Cause if they did, I can call my mum and we can help you find them. By the way, you really should buy your cauldron first. That way you have something to carry your books in.”</p><p>“My parents didn’t go to another store,” the girl mumbled.</p><p>James’s shoulders slumped. “They didn’t come with you?”</p><p>The girl started clambering back up the shelves and hissed, “I bloody well told you that. Now can you please help me get my book?”</p><p>When she looked down, however, James was no longer there. A few minutes later, he came back, firmly holding the hand of an older woman with dark raven hair, and sharp grey eyes that were trained on the girl’s feet on the shelves. “Hello, I am Dorea Potter. I’m James’s mother. Might I ask your name?”</p><p>Her voice sounded pleasant enough, not tense or sickly-sweet the way most adults sounded when irritated with children. And the name Potter sounded familiar, but the girl couldn’t quite place where she heard it. The girl scaled down and gave the woman a look over, her stare a bit more guarded and hallow then one would expect of a child her size. Apparently deciding she liked what she saw, the girl answered, “Carmen Graves, ma’am.”</p><p>A strange expression passed over Madam Potter’s face before she suppressed it in favour of a warm, friendly one. “Is this your first time coming to Diagon Alley, Carmen?”</p><p>“Yes ma’am.”</p><p>“And James tells me your parents chose not to come with you?”</p><p>Carmen gulped and looked over at James. He smiled encouragingly and nodded, black hair falling in his face with the motion. He seemed happy enough. Deciding to be perfectly honest, she said, “Yes ma’am. They said they had better things to do than helping me buy school supplies.”</p><p>Madam Potter tutted. “Well, we can’t have that, now, can we? It just so happens that it is my James’s first year too. I would be glad to help you get your things. Do you have enough money to buy everything on your list?”</p><p>“I think so, ma’am.”</p><p>“May I see? I only want to make sure you’re well taken care of.”</p><p>Carmen dug into the pocket of her pinafore and pulled out a small pile of coins for the older witch’s perusal. Madam Potter let out a slight gasp and Carmen realized sleeves of her jumper had rolled up, revealing a thick, bright red line that wrapped around her wrist. She quickly tugged her sleeve back down and handed Madam Potter her coins. The older witch counted them out before tutting again. “Oh dear child, I don’t think this will cover everything. Here, come with me. James, we’re going back to Gringotts.”</p><p>“But Mum, Gringotts is <em>so</em> boring. Can’t I go look at brooms instead?”</p><p>Madam Potter sighed before giving her son a slight nod. “Yes, dear. But be sure to stay in the street. And don’t go near Knockturn Alley.”</p><p>“Yes, Mum.”</p><p>With that, James took off like a rocket, out of the store and into the street. “That child, so much energy,” Madam Potter gave Carmen a soft smile and held out her hand, “You’ll have to forgive James. As eager as he was to offer you our help, he’s not used to sharing my attention with other children. Now, dear child, I trust you know the way to Gringotts?”</p><p>Gringotts seemed much less intimidating with James’s mother next to her. The goblins didn’t seem to sneer as much, and Madam Potter could see over the front desk without standing on her tiptoes. The goblin sitting there looked at them over his glasses. “Madam Potter, I did not expect to see you here again so soon.”</p><p>“Neither did I, but I’ve found myself with another child in my care.”</p><p>The goblin pulled down his glasses slightly and fixed his eyes on Carmen. “And you are?”</p><p>“Car- . . . I, uh . . . Carmen Graves, sir.”</p><p>The goblin shifted through a few of the papers in front of him before finding the one he needed. “Well, Madam, you might not need to access your vault after all. The head of the Graves family in America wrote to us this past year, giving access to their Gringotts vaults to a distant cousin of theirs who would be starting her first term at Hogwarts this year.” Turning his attention back to Carmen, he asked, “Would that be you, Miss Graves?”</p><p>“I think so, yeah. I mean, it might be?”</p><p>“Do you have a key to your vault, Miss Graves?”</p><p>Blue eyes lit up and she pulled a long golden chain out from under her shirt, a black ring and a delicate-looking skeleton key hanging off the end of it. She held it up for both Madam Potter and the goblin to look at. “Is this a vault key? My Nana Tory gave it to me after Professor McGonagall gave me my letter. She said Grandad left it to me in his will.”</p><p>Taking the chain, Madam Potter turned the key over a few times in her hand, wearing the same strange expression from earlier, before taking the key off the chain and handing it to the goblin. The goblin flashed a small toothy smile that looked funny on his stern face. “Yes, Miss Graves, this is a vault key. Your vault key, to be precise.”</p><p>Climbing down from behind the desk, the goblin waddled over to a door on the side of the hallway. “This way, please.”</p><p>He led them to an underground system that looked like somebody had placed mining carts on a big dipper. The goblin and Madam Potter climbed in one easily, but Carmen held back. Madam Potter held out her hand. “I assure you, dear, it is perfectly safe.”</p><p>Carmen shot her a sceptical look but still took her hand and climbed in. No sooner than she sat down and the cart shot off. Just like a funfair ride. Except perhaps a bit more rickety. On their first turn, Carmen screamed and gripped Madam Potter’s hand tight. It seemed like a long time before the cart finally stopped in front of a bare wall. “Vault 709,” the goblin intoned.</p><p>He hopped out of the cart and handed over his lantern to Madam Potter before running a finger down the middle of the wall. The wall then gave way to a set of double doors engraved similarly to the key Carmen held tight in her hand. “We seal vaults that have been abandoned for more than fifty years,” he explained, “now that you are here, we will lift these security measures before your next visit unless you instruct otherwise.”</p><p>Without thinking, Carmen looked up at Madam Potter for help. The older woman cleared her throat before saying, “No, keeping the extra precautions will not be necessary. Thank you, Master Goblin.”</p><p>The goblin didn’t bother to look up at the older woman, instead choosing to keep eye contact with the girl at her side. “Does Madam Potter speak for you, Miss Graves?”</p><p>She looked over the older woman again, straining to find the slightest hint of malice or ill will. Again finding none, the blonde girl shrugged. “She does.” She let the <em>for now</em> remain unspoken.</p><p>Madam Potter started a bit at that, but once again, she relaxed back into her warm countenance. The goblin didn’t seem to notice the exchange. Or if he did, he didn’t care. “Key,” he said, hand open and outstretched.</p><p>Carmen handed it over and the goblin unlocked the vault door, swinging it open. Carmen stepped away from Madam Potter for the first time since meeting her and into the vault. Stacks of coins filled the room. There were also a few strange moving portraits – the kind Grandad had told her about but she had never seen for herself – and a few boxes of what looked like jewellery. Thick tomes and trunks lined the back wall. Before Carmen had a chance to properly take it all in, Madam Potter handed her a decent pile of coins that filled her pinafore pockets when she dropped them in. “There. That should suffice for now. Plus some extra for the trolley when it comes time to board the train to Hogwarts.”</p><p>When they got back to the bronze doors at the entrance to Gringott’s, key once again on its chain and firmly hidden under her shirt, Madam Potter waved for her to go on ahead. “Go and find James, dear child. I have a tad extra business with the goblins.”</p><p>Finding James proved easy. He and another boy their age had their faces practically glued to the front window of Quality Quidditch Supplies, black-haired heads bobbing in excitement. “Look, mate, that’s the Bright Flight Three Hundred! It’s the best beater’s broom out there!” the new boy told James.</p><p>The broom did look nice, black and sleek, but kind of short. The broom next to it looked better Carmen thought. A pale oak colour of medium length with waxed down bristles that gleamed in the shop window, Carmen fell in love with it at once. “What about the one next to it?”</p><p>James turned and smiled at her, hazel eyes taking on a sharp gleam. “That’s the Lightning Strike. It’s supposed to be this awesome Chaser’s broom but none of the professionals have tried it yet. You like Quidditch?”</p><p>Carmen shifted on her feet a little bit. Grandad hadn’t really told her about Quidditch except to say it wasn’t as popular across the pond as it was here. But it sounded fun. Carmen used to close her eyes and imagine lifting high up in the air, spinning through the sky, wind roaring in her ears. She loved it when Grandad talked about flying. It sounded like freedom. “I don’t know. I’ve never seen a game before. But it sounds brilliant, yeah?”</p><p>“It’s wicked cool,” the black-haired boy who was definitely not James said, although he did look a bit like Madam Potter in the face. “I’m Sirius, by the way.”</p><p>Carmen stuck out her hand and giggled when Sirius kissed her knuckles. “Seriously?”</p><p>“Yep.” </p><p>He flashed her a huge grin like she had caught onto the world’s biggest joke. “I’m Carmen.”</p><p>She was really starting to look forward to not having to introduce herself every ten minutes.  Before she could say anything else, a shrill voice cut through the air. “Sirius Orion Black!”</p><p>Both Carmen and Sirius jumped at the noise, bodies going rigid. They shared a look James didn’t quite understand. Carmen lowered her head, a curtain of golden blonde covering her eyes, and flattened herself against the shop window, right in front of the Lightning Strike. Sirius, though, stood as tall as he could and jutted out his chin. “Walburga.”</p><p>Carmen could unfortunately still make out the fashionably dressed, perfectly average woman, if perhaps a bit long in the jaw, from underneath her hair as the woman stomped over to Sirius, dragging a little boy with her. “Where have you been?”</p><p>“Aw, mum, I didn’t know you cared.”</p><p>“You left your brother alone. He could have gotten hurt!”</p><p>Sirius shrugged. “It’s not like he was in trouble. Reggie doesn’t stray five feet from his precious mummy if he can help it.”</p><p>The woman – Walburga, Sirius had called her – sniffed, turning up her nose at her own child. Her free hand clenched and unclenched at her side. The poor little boy standing halfway behind her winced as she gripped his hand a little too tightly. “Your brother has always had a decent sense of propriety. You, however, need to learn some respect, you –” </p><p>Sirius huffed and threw back his head, seemingly trying to rally himself together for whatever was coming but found himself cut off as Madam Potter laid a hand upon his shoulder and gently guided him behind her. “Walburga.”</p><p>“Aunt,” Walburga spat out the word as if it had poisoned her.</p><p>From what Carmen could see, Madam Potter wasn’t bothered by her niece’s venom. “What fine-looking boys you have, niece. It’s been far too long since I last saw them.”</p><p>“It’s a pity one can’t say the same for your little wretch.”</p><p>James, still next to Carmen, flashed a wicked smile and ran his fingers through his hair, deliberately making it stand on end. Madam Potter set her shoulders back and replied, “What an incredibly awful thing to say. And about a child, no less. Is your mouth moving too fast for your brain again? You really must see a Healer about that. But really, if you were trying to insult me, do at least put some effort in.”</p><p>Walburga’s face turned an unhealthy shade of red and she snapped, “I don’t waste my time on blood-traitors.”</p><p>Sirius, however, looked up at Madam Potter as if she had just walked on water. “I don’t believe I’ve properly introduced myself. Sirius Black, ma’am.”</p><p>Madam Potter smiled down at him. “I may not have seen you since your brother was born, but I do remember you, dear.”</p><p>Just then, Walburga snapped her fingers. “Sirius, come.”</p><p>Peeling herself away from the window, Carmen watched the awful woman walk away, one boy firmly in hand, the other trailing behind with hunched shoulders. Sirius risked a glance back, a small frown on his face before his eyes caught Madam Potter’s and his face lit up all over again.</p><p>Madam Potter smoothed her hands over the skirts of her robes. “Well, that was unpleasant. Now, I believe a second trip to Ollivander’s is in order. And I will hear none of your whining, James. Miss Graves is in need of a wand, and you most graciously offered assistance in helping her collect her supplies.”</p><p>Ollivander’s had ended being run by a strange but mild-mannered man of the same name and after a few mishaps, Carmen walked out of the shop with a gorgeous blackthorn wand of eleven and three-quarters length with a dragon heartstring core.</p><p>From there, shopping was fairly simple. The little group ticked off each item on their lists as they picked them up. James tried to buy a peacock quill when they went to Scribbulus Writing Instruments, but Madam Potter put a stop to that. In the end, he chose a pheasant quill to go with the one Carmen had already bought. James complained loudly when Madam Potter took them to a beauty shop full of soaps and hair oils. They had samples set out in little crystal bottles with signs advertising <em>PLACE YOUR HAIR IN A VIAL AND GIVE OUR SCENTS A TRIAL</em>. James ended up sitting outside with their purchases while the two witches shopped. They ended up deciding a nice green tea set that claimed to have an invigorating potion in it worked best for Carmen. And Carmen pretended not to notice when Madam Potter quietly bought a scar removal lotion and slipped it into her bag along with the oil and soap set.</p><p>Robes were not so easy, though. Madam Potter insisted that since she was apparently the first Graves to set foot in Hogwarts in over three centuries, she needed tailored school robes and two sets of casual robes for the weekends. At least Carmen got to pick the colours of her weekend robes: one deep burgundy for the cold weather set and a pastel pink for the warm weather set. James gave her a funny look for that one, but Carmen had taken one look at the colour swatch and fallen in love. After that, she and James stood across from each other on the footstools, both wearing the same tired expression on their faces.</p><p>“I’m sorry about this,” James said, arms outstretched as his robes were pinned in place. “Mum can be a bit old-fashioned about certain things.”</p><p>“Like clothes?”</p><p>“Not all clothes. But robes? Definitely.”</p><p>Madam Potter sat a polite distance away, far enough off to the side so as not to disrupt the tailors’ work, but close enough to carry on a conversation. “Miss Graves, forgive my rudeness, but I must ask. How did the Graves family come to be back in Britain?”</p><p>“Oh, my grandad moved back here in the late twenties, ma’am, after, well, his family was forced to give him the boot, as it were.”</p><p>“And your father, then, attended Ilvermorny?”</p><p>“What? No, my parents . . . they’re non-magical.”</p><p>“Muggles?” Madam Potter’s silver eyes widened in surprise.</p><p>“If that’s what you call them here, yeah. Grandad was a squib, though – I think that’s the word. That’s why his family couldn’t let him stay. It’d be against Rappa-”</p><p>“Rappaport’s Law,” Madam Potter shifted slightly so she sat on the edge of her seat. “And it took only two generations for the magic to come back into your family?”</p><p>Carmen tried very hard not to squirm at the question, lest the tailor accidentally prick her. “Yes, ma’am.”</p><p>Madam Potter hummed under her breath. “Interesting. And your family in America know you’re magical. How did that come to pass?”</p><p>“As soon as the law was repealed, his brother and sisters sent an owl, wanting to reconnect, yeah? That’s when Grandad told them I was a witch.”</p><p>“I see. My husband’s family and yours were quite close once. We lost touch with them during Grindelwald’s War. It is good to know that perhaps we have not lost that valued connection forever.”</p><p>Her words settled in the air. Carmen didn’t know how to reply. Madam Potter didn’t seem to need one. She simply stood up and paid the tailors who were finishing up their work. “Your robes should be done at half three,” one said.</p><p>After finishing up there, Madam Potter knelt down in front of the children. “Now, we have some time before your robes are finished, and I believe we have one last thing to get on your lists: a familiar. You can either choose a small pet that can easily be kept in a cage during the school day as your first familiar, or you can choose one from your lists. James?”</p><p>James jumped up and down in place, shouting, “I want an owl, Mum!”</p><p>“And you, Carmen?”</p><p>“I’m not sure my parents . . .”</p><p>Madam Potter waved her hand. “Oh, posh. You are eleven years old. You’re certainly old enough to take care of a pet on your own. And if it truly becomes a problem, then James’s father and I will take in your choice of familiar for summer hols.”</p><p>Carmen’s nose scrunched up as she thought about it, before softly saying, “I think I’d like a cat.”</p><p>They stopped at Eeylops Owl Emporium first for James’s owl. James looked at all sorts of owls, pausing at the Tawny owls, waiting to hear their call, before moving on to the screech owls. He didn’t stay long there. Carmen knew immediately when James decided. He stopped short on his second walk through the store, backtracking a few steps before stopping at a beautiful barn owl that rather resembled a toasted marshmallow, feathers all fluffed up as if it couldn’t suffer the indignity of being caged for one second longer than it had to.</p><p>Next, they moved on to the Magical Menagerie, where Madam Potter told her she’d find her cat. The store was cramped and had a rather nasty smell to it. The noise of all those poor, caged creatures made it too loud for Carmen to hear herself think. Madam Potter walked her up to the young witch behind the front desk. “We would like to see your selection of cats, please.”</p><p>The witch took one walk around the store and then came back, five cages floating behind her. She lowered them to the floor behind the counter before picking up one and placing it in front of the two witches. The black cat inside took one look at Carmen and hissed before turning in a circle and laying facing away from her. The witch muttered, “Don’t take it to 'eart, dearie. Can't say I've found someone good ol' Tibert's fond of yet. I keep 'oping though.”</p><p>The next cage she placed on the counter seemed almost empty. Then Carmen spotted the small, shaking kitten in the corner. Carefully, Carmen placed her fingers in the cage and made “ch, ch, ch” noises at the cat. On trembling legs, the brown striped kitten made its way toward Carmen and rubbed its head against her fingers. “Just got this un,” the witch said, “twelve weeks old. Just came in yesterday. 'Er and the rest of 'er litter. 'Aven’t even named 'er yet.”</p><p>The kitten seemed frightened, big eyes darting around her cage, squeaking and hissing every time a particularly loud noise reached her ears. “Hexe, her name is Hexe,” Carmen said.</p><p>“You’ll take 'er then?”</p><p>Madam Potter looked down at her. “Are you sure? There are several other cats we can take a look at.”</p><p>“I want Hexe.”</p><p>The older witch nodded. “We’ll take her.”</p><p>“Five galleons, please.”</p><p>Carmen counted out the money and was surprised to find she still had several coins leftover, just as Madam Potter said she would. After paying for Hexe, they went back to pick up their robes. Carmen watched with wide eyes as her pink robes were boxed up and knew the minute she’d be trying them on the minute she got home.</p><p>Madam Potter and James waited outside the Leaky Cauldron with her, on the Muggle side until her parents pulled up. Mum and Dad sniffed at the Potters, rather like Walburga had done to Sirius, and refused all offers to help them load her school things into the boot of their car. Dad scowled a bit when he saw Hexe, muttering, “At least she’s taking it with her.”</p><p>As they drove off, Carmen twisted to look out the window, watching as the Potters walked back into the Leaky to go home themselves.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Old Friends and New</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <em>Dear Mr Graves,</em>
</p><p>
  <em>I apologize for my forwardness, but I’ve found that being forward can be a necessity in these trying times. My name is Dorea Potter. My husband, Charlus Potter, is a distant cousin of Abraham Potter, which I believe is a name you might recognize. I had the pleasure of running into your cousin, a Miss Carmen Graves, in Diagon Alley this past week. She was without either parent or guardian. I do not mean to alarm you, but as I am sure you are aware, it is unsafe in our current political climate for a magical child raised by muggles to be so unattended. When my son James introduced me to her, I took the liberty of escorting her as she did her shopping. She was a nervous little thing and seemed to trust me only against her better judgement. You should also be aware that she had a ring of scar tissue around one of her wrists that she did her best to keep covered.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Your faithful friend, Dorea Potter</em>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <em>Madam Potter,</em>
</p><p>
  <em>My uncle, the young Miss Graves’ grandfather, was aware that his son and daughter in law did not take well to the knowledge that their daughter was a witch, and made us aware of it as well. However, I have not had contact with my family in Britain since his death two years ago and this is the first I have heard of any abuse or neglect. I thank you for bringing it to my attention and would appreciate being kept informed as to my cousin’s well-being.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Sincerely, Orville G. Graves</em>
</p>
<hr/>
<h4>1 September, 1971</h4><p>Carmen’s Mum and Dad weren’t so generous as to drive all the way down to London a second time in order for her to board her train, so she found herself alone packing her trunk and Hexe’s carrier onto a trolley and dragging it onto the train in Leeds at seven in the morning on the first of September. Hexe loudly protested for the first half hour of the train ride, before Carmen ripped the bow out of her hair and stuck it in the cage with the poor kitten to cuddle. She took no small amount of pleasure in watching the cat kick and gnaw at the thick, black ribbon. </p><p>Her train arrived at King’s Cross a little after ten and, clutching her ticket, Carmen pushed her trolley to platforms nine and ten. Not a single sign of Platform nine and three-quarters. With a sigh, Carmen sat down on the nearest bench and waited. Surely someone would come by before her train left who knew the way to platform nine and three-quarters. She ended up not having to wait long. A few minutes after she sat down, she heard a familiar voice behind her. “Hi, Carmen. Remember me?”</p><p>Carmen turned around and smiled at James.</p><p>“James, slow down!”</p><p>An older man with salt and pepper hair – more pepper than salt – and James’s eyes jogged up behind him and laid a hand on the boy’s shoulder. “James, are you going to introduce me to your friend?”</p><p>James nodded absently. “Oh, yeah. Sure, dad. Dad, this is Carmen. Carmen, this is my dad.”</p><p>James’s dad held out his hand. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Miss Carmen . . .?”</p><p>Tugging down the sleeves of her dress, Carmen stood up and shook his hand. “Graves, sir. Carmen Graves.”</p><p>“Ah, yes. Miss Graves, my wife told me she and James ran into you. Hopefully, James didn’t give you too much trouble.” </p><p>“No sir.”</p><p>As if summoned, Madam Potter glided up behind her husband and son. “Ah, Miss Graves. I was hoping we would see you before the train left. How are you, dear?”</p><p>Carmen shrugged. “Well enough, Madam Potter.”</p><p>Madam Potter’s sharp eyes met Carmen’s for a minute before she let out a light ‘hmm.’</p><p>Mr Potter wrapped his arm around his wife’s shoulders and said, “I suppose you’re wondering how to get to the platform, huh?”</p><p>“Yes sir.”</p><p>“Do you see the barrier between the platforms?” </p><p>Mr Potter pointed over at platforms nine and ten. Carmen nodded. “It’s right through that wall. Now, there is a bit of a trick to it. You have to believe you’ll be able to walk through; you can’t be afraid of crashing into it.”</p><p>Carmen glanced over at the barrier and back at Mr Potter. It seemed plausible, but at the same time, it sounded completely nutters. Walking into a brick wall without being afraid of crashing? James piped up, “Mum says to start at a run if you’re scared.”</p><p>Madam Potter must have thought Carmen still looked unsure because she waved James over to the wall. “James, dear, why don’t you go first?”</p><p>With a whoop, James took his trolley and rushed at the barrier and he – he disappeared! Tentatively, Carmen took her own trolley started rolling it to where James disappeared. Glancing back at Mr and Madam Potter, who both gave encouraging smiles, she broke into a run. Hexe hissed at being jostled. Carmen squeezed her eyes shut as her trolley gained speed. And right as she should have hit the barrier, she felt a small shiver roll over her skin. Opening her eyes, she saw James grinning madly at her, and behind him a bright scarlet steam engine. “Is – is this the train that takes us to Hogwarts?”</p><p>“Yep. That’s the Hogwarts’ Express.”</p><p>“Wow.”</p><p>“James, dear, come over here.”</p><p>Carmen jumped when she heard Madam Potter’s voice behind her. Madam Potter’s gaze landed on her again and she shuffled away and averted her eyes as the Potters hugged their son and said their goodbyes. She watched as people paraded by in a mixture of colourful robes and muggle – that was the word, right? – shirts and trousers. Mothers and fathers hugged their children, holding them close one last time before sending off to school and kissed the foreheads of teenagers whose faces flushed with embarrassment. Friends hugging each other after spending the summer apart. Madam Potter walked back into eyesight as she ushered James onto the train. “Why don’t you be a gentleman and take Miss Graves’ things onto the train and find you two a seat, dear?”</p><p>“Why can’t she find her own seat, Mum?”</p><p>Madam Potter let out a rather indelicate huff. “It would do you good to learn how to treat young ladies now that you are attending Hogwarts.” She then leaned down to brush his cheek with a gloved hand and told him in a fond tone, “Women’s talk, my little lion. Go on now.”</p><p>With a sigh, James took Carmen’s trunk and Hexe’s carrier from her and darted off toward a mostly empty car. “I could have –”</p><p>Madam Potter sighed and leaned down slightly, grey eyes locking onto Carmen’s blue ones. “I know dear, but this gives us a chance to talk before you leave. I . . .” She paused, as if struggling to find the right wording, “I understand that your parents are not quite as . . . understanding as you might need them to be.”</p><p>Something heavy and uncomfortable settled in Carmen’s chest. She opened her mouth to disagree but Madam Potter placed a hand on her cheek as she had just done to James. “I only want you to know that if you need anything while you are at Hogwarts, please don’t hesitate to owl us. James will make his owl available to you if you need it. Now, off you go, dear. Mustn't keep James waiting too long. Merlin knows what that boy is liable to do unsupervised.”</p><p>Carmen let out a small laugh and took off in the direction James had gone, but that heavy feeling stayed with her. Lost in her own head, she must have gotten on the wrong train car, because she still hadn’t found James by the time the train took off. As she walked through the train, checking compartments as she went, she didn’t notice as a boy barrelled down the corridor straight towards her, knocking her off her feet. She looked up to see a dark-haired boy in school robes– why do so many wizards have dark hair? Do they breed for it or something? – sneering down at her. “You should watch where you’re going.”</p><p>Carmen sneered right back. “Same to you.”</p><p>She brushed the dirt off her stockings and held out her hand. The boy just kept sneering. “Well, aren’t you going to help a girl up?”</p><p>The boy’s abnormally large nose twitched and he pushed her hand out of the way. He tried to walk past, only to be blocked by a tallish lanky boy with sandy hair and wild eyes who was also wearing his school robes. “You should apologize.”</p><p>“Why?”</p><p>“You just pushed over that girl.”</p><p>Carmen’s attention was pulled from the argument as a girl with red-rimmed green eyes held out her hand. Taking it, the girl helped Carmen to her feet. “I’m sorry. Sev can be –”</p><p>“Rude?” the lanky boy said, coming up behind Carmen. </p><p>This time, she managed to keep from jumping at the sound. The girl blushed, eyes dancing around the corridor. “I really am sorry about him.”</p><p>The girl took off after her rude friend, hopefully to berate him. Carmen brushed more dirt off her stockings, noticing a small tear starting to form on her right knee. Thank god she would be changing into robes before they got to school. Her first day and her clothes were already a mess. “Are you alright?” the lanky boy asked.</p><p>“Yeah, yeah. I’m fine. Just got a bit distracted and then I ran into . . .”</p><p>“I saw. I’m Remus, by the way.”</p><p>Remus’ hand shook as he held it out to her, almost as if he thought she wouldn’t take it. Carmen grasped his hand in hers firmly and she didn’t miss the breath he let out as she shook his hand. “Carmen. I’m kind of lost. A-a family friend had her son take my trunk onto the train and I could have sworn he got on one of the back cars but I’m all turned around now. Do you think you could?” she trailed off.</p><p>He flashed her a smile that somehow managed to be both shaky and bold. “Sure.”</p><p>James and the boy from Sirius were lounging about in a compartment not too far from where that boy had knocked Carmen over when Carmen and Remus found them. James jumped up from his seat and immediately handed over Hexe, who let out an angry little growl. “See, I told you she’d find us!” he said to Sirius.</p><p>Turning his attention to Carmen, James stuck his hands in his pockets and said, “I let your cat out. She wouldn’t shut up. Thought she might calm down if she was able to move around. It seemed to work too until she found our school robes. Then she started acting crazy.”</p><p>Carmen hugged Hexe to her, the cat purring contentedly in her arms. “Crazy?”</p><p>“Yeah. She pulled them out from under the seat and started clawing at them and rolling around in them. Bloody cat wouldn’t stop until I pulled her off. Who’s your friend?”</p><p>“Oh, yeah, this is Remus. He helped me out after a rude boy ran into me right after I boarded the train.”</p><p>“Big nose, greasy hair?” Sirius asked.</p><p>“Well, I didn’t get a good look at his hair –”</p><p>“That’s him,” Remus spoke up.</p><p>“Git,” Sirius muttered under his breath.</p><p>James took Remus’ trunk from him and packed it away, asking, “I’m James and this is Sirius. So, Remus, what house are you wanting?”</p><p>“Gry-Gryffindor, I think. Or Hufflepuff,” Remus’ voice shook, much like the rest of him. </p><p>James perked up and gestured for Remus to sit next to Sirius. “My dad was in Gryffindor.”</p><p>Remus visibly relaxed and slouched in his seat next to Sirius. After checking her own trunk was carefully packed away, Carmen sat down next to James, cradling Hexe to her chest. “What house do you want, Carmen?”</p><p>“I really don’t know. I’m a lot more familiar with the Ilvermorny houses.”</p><p>“That’s right. Your family’s from the States, aren’t they? What house do you think you’d want if you went there?”</p><p>“Grandad said most of my family was split between Thunderbird and Wampus. I think, if I had to pick, I’d go with Thunderbird. What are the Hogwarts houses?”</p><p>Remus pulled out his trunk and rummaged around until he pulled out a thick, well-worn book and handed it over to Carmen. “Chapter six is Hogwarts houses.”</p><p>As Carmen flipped through the book, James explained, “There are four houses, one for each of the founders –”</p><p>“I know <em>that</em>. Ilvermorny’s house system was based on Hogwarts, yeah?”</p><p>“Yeah, well. Gryffindor is the home of the brave! Ravenclaw gets the brainy ones, Hufflepuff is known for hard workers, and Slytherin – well,” James glanced over at Sirius. “Slytherin favours those who like the Dark Arts.”</p><p>“A load of dark wizards, the lot of them,” Sirius said.</p><p>Carmen must have pulled a face because Sirius asked, “Don’t like dark wizards? Good on you, if you don’t.”</p><p>“I don’t think my family gets on well with them. Not since Grindelwald’s War, at least.”</p><p>“That’s right,” James piped up, “Mum said one of your relatives was kidnapped by Grindelwald during the war.”</p><p>“My great-granduncle, Percival Graves, yeah. I think if I had a choice I’d go with Gryffindor or Ravenclaw. How do you get sorted at Hogwarts? It doesn’t look like the book tells you that,” Carmen said, shifting in her seat.</p><p>Before the boys could answer, a kindly old woman popped her head into the open compartment. “Honeyduke’s Express. Anything from the trolley, dears?”</p><p>Carmen marvelled at the artfully arranged candies and snack foods the witch was selling and suddenly remembered the coins jangling in her pocket. As she pulled them out, she saw James and Sirius doing the same. Remus stayed still, hands firmly in his lap, eyes trained on the window. As James and Sirius looked over the candies, Carmen kicked her leg lightly against his. “Anything you want?”</p><p>Remus jumped a bit and let out a small honest-to-god growl, eyebrows furrowing together. “What?”</p><p>“You want anything from the trolley?”</p><p>“I’ve got my lunch. My mum packed a coronation chicken sandwich for me.”</p><p>“That was nice of her. Not what I asked though.”</p><p>His eyes darted over to the trolley. “Do you think she has any chocolate frogs left?”</p><p>Thankfully James and Sirius were taking their time, so the witch was still there. Carmen handed Hexe over to Remus and went to stand beside them. “Two chocolate frogs, a . . .” she looked over the trolley, “box of sugar mice, two – no four – bags of crisps, and two iced pumpkin juices if you please.”</p><p>Thankfully the money Carmen had leftover from school shopping covered her order and then some. She was rather ashamed that she hadn’t thought of lunch at all when she packed for school the night before. Sitting back down, she passed the crisps out to the boys, one for each of them. It wouldn’t do to gorge themselves on candy alone and make themselves sick. </p><p>James, as it turned out, had also bought a treat for each of them, and passed out his pumpkin pasties. Which led to Sirius offering to share his cauldron cakes. Remus insisted on splitting his sandwich with Carmen as thanks for the candy. She tried to refuse, but eventually, her hunger won over and Carmen relented. His mum did make a rather tasty looking chicken sandwich, after all.</p><p>James and Sirius made a game out of throwing strange-coloured jelly beans in each other’s mouths. Remus rolled his eyes at them but laughed when one hit Sirius in the eye and gladly claimed the ones that missed their mark. One of Carmen’s mice got lose and Hexe chased it around the compartment, dutifully returning it to her girl when caught. Carmen threw that one out the window when Hexe wasn’t watching. As the fields outside the window turned to forests, a bubbly copper-haired girl in an oversized jumper poked her head into the compartment. “Hey, you wouldn’t happen to have any peppermint toads or ginger snitches, would you? A girl in my compartment looks like she’s about to be sick. The train bothers her motion sickness, apparently.”</p><p>James shook his head. “No, sorry.”</p><p>“Maybe you got a fizzy drink? Anything?” the girl asked, clearly trying to hold out hope.</p><p>“No, we didn’t buy anything like that.”</p><p>“Damn! I mean – darn. Darn. Please don’t tell my mum I said that! Maybe the next compartment has some. Thanks anyway!” the girl yelled over her shoulder as she ran door the corridor.</p><p>Next thing they knew, a girl with a shiny prefect’s badge on her robes popped her head in to remind them to change into their robes before the train reached Hogwarts. </p><p>The boys left the compartment to give Carmen a chance to change first. As she pulled on her robes, she rubbed at the scars on her wrists. While the lotion Madam Potter had bought her worked wonders, the scars were still an ugly pinkish-red and stood out against her rosy skin. Thankfully the robe sleeves were long enough and tight enough to keep them covered. Hexe hissed and tried to scratch her when Carmen manoeuvred her back into her carrier.</p><p>The corridor was full with children when Carmen opened the door and stepped out, allowing James and Sirius to slide past her. Remus stood next to her, scowling at the rude boy who was also waiting in the corridor. The girl from earlier stood next to him and offered Carmen a small, sad smile. A voice overhead announced their impending arrival at Hogwarts Station.</p><p>James slid open the door just as the train slowed to a stop. Students clambered over each other in a rush to get off the train. The platform was dark, with a lone light shining high over everyone’s heads. The source of it seemed to be an impossibly tall man holding a lamp. “Firs’-years!” he called, “Firs’-years over here!” </p><p>The platform was crowded and Carmen was bumped this way and that as she tried to make her way over to the man. Suddenly her robes felt overly warm despite the evening chill and Carmen found it hard to breathe. She grabbed James’s sleeve in an attempt to keep from being separated in the sea of students. He glanced back, face cross before he realized who grabbed him. Gently, he got her to release his robes and wrapped her hand in his, pulling her with him to the edge of the crowd with their friends. “Any more firs’-years?” the man boomed. “No then? Alrigh’. Follow me and mind yer step.”</p><p>The narrow path the man led them down thinned the crowd a bit and Carmen breathed a bit easier. James kept a hold of her hand, going ahead of her and leading her around the rocks and tree roots that littered the path. “Hogwarts is jus’ around the bend here, yeh’ll get a look in jus’ a sec.”</p><p>And then she saw it. If Carmen thought Diagon Alley was grand, it had nothing on Hogwarts. There, high on a hill on the other side of a big, glittering, black lake, stood one of the grandest castles Carmen had ever seen, and she’d seen one or two. Large, ornate windows shined like crystals against the night sky. Carmen tried to count the towers, but there were just too many. </p><p>“No more’n four in a boat,” the man called, pointing to a fleet of little boats sitting in the water by the shore.</p><p>Sirius scrambled to get to one of the boats first and took Carmen’s hand from James to help her in. He climbed in next to her, James and Remus following close behind. As soon as everyone was in a boat, the man shouted, “FORWARD!” and the boats started gliding across the lake as if they had a mind of their own. </p><p>Carmen caught some of the other first-years feeling around the boat, looking for a hidden motor or something as if they still had a hard time believing in magic. Her eyes, however, stayed glued on the giant castle as they approached the cliffside. </p><p>“Heads down!”</p><p>Everyone ducked as they went under a curtain of ivy that hid a cave opening in the cliff. The boats continued on a bit down a dark tunnel. Carmen was beginning to sense a theme here and she didn’t like it. Not one bit. Finally, the boats docked and Carmen waited until she saw the man with the light climb out of his boat before clambering out of her own. She must have shivered or something because one of the boys wrapped an arm around her shoulder. “It’s okay,” they said – the voice sounded like Sirius – “I don’t like the dark either.”</p><p>They followed the light more-so than the giant of a man holding it up the stone steps to the castle door. The man knocked three times.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Couple of things here: 1) I'm going with the book descriptions of robes here because it just makes more sense to me and it will fit better with later plot points. 2) The full moon in September 1971 was on the 5th, so I wrote Remus as a little nervy and irritable because he's being introduced to all these new stimuli at a time when he's already on edge. Hopefully, I still did him justice.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. The Sorting</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Professor McGonagall stood behind the door with a stern look on her face that Carmen hadn’t seen when the witch came to deliver her letter. She thanked the man, who she called Hagrid, and led the first-years down a thankfully lit hallway. She led them past a large double-door, behind which Carmen could hear a clamor of voices. They must seat the other students first. </p><p>The professor led them into a small chamber off the hall and once again Carmen found herself crushed between the other students. A quick look to her right told her Remus was as tense and uncomfortable as she was. James pushed past other students until he stood next to her, keeping the masses at bay and Carmen noticed Sirius do the same for Remus.</p><p>Carmen kept her eyes on Professor McGonagall and above the sea of heads as she welcomed them to Hogwarts. “We will begin the start-of-term feast shortly, but before you take your seats, you will be sorted into your houses.”</p><p>She went on to explain the different houses and a points system that seemed to be used both as a reward and as a form of discipline. Afterward, she said, “The Sorting Ceremony shall begin in the Great Hall in a few minutes. I will return for you when we are ready. I recommend you use this time to put yourselves to rights.”</p><p>She looked rather pointedly at James’s hair, which was sticking up in every direction, and a few others whose robes had gotten rumbled in their little trek through the dark. “Please wait quietly.”</p><p>With that, she left the chamber. Carmen turned to James, who ran a hand through his hair, presumably to smooth it down some. It didn’t work. “Did she say how we were to be sorted?”</p><p>“I don’t think so. My Mum said not to worry though, that it’s not nearly as intimidating as it looks.”</p><p>“Well that’s comforting.”</p><p>“She was a Slytherin, though. Not exactly known for their bravery, that lot. So it must not be too bad.”</p><p>Before Carmen had a chance to reply, Professor McGonagall returned. “Please form a line and follow me.”</p><p>Without either Remus or Carmen asking them to, James and Sirius flanked them, one in front, the other in back. It was kind of scary how easily they picked out the weaker pair out of the four of them, like predators. But also comforting as they had immediately dubbed themselves their protectors.</p><p>Professor McGonagall led them back out to the hallway and through the double doors Carmen had seen earlier. The Great Hall, Carmen found, was set up rather like a medieval court, with the teachers at a raised table at the end of the hall and students at four long tables below it. Thousands of candles floated above the student tables, which were lined with golden plates and goblets. And the ceiling! The ceiling looked as if it didn’t even exist. Instead, a dark sky with hundreds of shining stars shone down on them.</p><p>The professor led them up to the high table and placed in front of them a short, wooden stool. And on top of the stool, she placed a wide-brimmed pointed hat, the kind a witch or wizard would wear. The constant hum that had filled the hall quieted. The hat twitched. And then with a raspy voice, it began to sing.</p><p>
  <em>Gather all you children<br/>
And I’ll tell to you my tale<br/>
I’m a hat, you see, my friends<br/>
Not a club or wand or grail</em>
</p><p>
  <em>I’ll look into your tiny heads<br/>
And see what makes you tick<br/>
And then for you a match I’ll make<br/>
And a house for you I’ll pick</em>
</p><p>
  <em>You might belong in Gryffindor<br/>
And dress in scarlet and gold<br/>
Here dwell the brave and strong<br/>
And little lions roam bold</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Or you might go to Hufflepuff<br/>
And wear all blacks and yellows<br/>
Hard workers, yes, and loyal too<br/>
Badgers make quite decent fellows</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Or perhaps you’ll find that Ravenclaw<br/>
All donned in blue and bronze<br/>
Will house your talent and wit<br/>
As the proud eagle's scions</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Last not least is Slytherin<br/>
Home of silver and green<br/>
Giving rise to ambition and cunning<br/>
Like the great snake so keen</em>
</p><p>
  <em>But no matter where you go<br/>
You’ll hold Hogwarts in common<br/>
And once you take me off your head<br/>
You’ll see each other of’en!</em>
</p><p>The hall filled with applause as the hat bowed as much as a hat could. Professor McGonagall stepped forward, a long roll of parchment in her hands. “When I call your name, you are to come forward, put on the hat, and sit on the stool to be sorted. Abbot, Marian!”</p><p>A girl a few places ahead of Carmen darted out of line and up to Professor McGonagall. The hat fell right over her eyes. No wonder they had the first-years sit on the stool. After a tic, the hat yelled, “HUFFLEPUFF!”</p><p>The girl placed the hat back on the stool and ran over to the table on the far right, covered in black and yellow.</p><p>“Aubrey, Bertram!”</p><p>“RAVENCLAW!”</p><p>The table to the middle left welcomed this one, a few of them standing up to shake Bertram’s hand as he sat down with them.</p><p>“Birch, Adrian” went to Ravenclaw as well. But his sister, “Birch, Andrea,” became the first Slytherin. Most of the those at the Slytherin table looked like Walburga Black had, noses in the air, eyes cold. </p><p>“Black, Sirius!”</p><p>The Slytherins sat forward in their seats as if getting ready to greet another new member. Carmen couldn’t figure out why. Sirius seemed to hate the house the way he had talked on the train. He sat on the stool for what seemed like a long time, face scrunched in concentration as if he were debating the hat. Finally after a minute or so passed by, the hat yelled, “GRYFFINDOR!”</p><p>The hall hushed as Sirius walked over to the table on the far left. Then a pair of red-headed boys held out their hands to him and he <em>beamed</em>, eagerly shaking their hands.</p><p>And so it went. “Bottlebrush, Hilda” went to Hufflepuff. Carmen didn’t catch the names of the boys who came after her, or where they went. She was still focused on Sirius, who was smiling and laughing and absolutely refusing to look at the Slytherin table.</p><p>“Evans, Lily!”</p><p>The friend of the rude boy stepped out of line, legs trembling as she walked up to the stool. Barely a second passed before the hat cried, “GRYFFINDOR!”</p><p>She had that same sad smile on her face as she looked back at the line, and presumably at her rude friend. </p><p>“Fawley, Cicely,” and “Fortescue, Alice” both went to Hufflepuff. Carmen thought she’d seen a shop in Diagon Alley with the name Fortescue on the sign and made a mental note to ask the girl if she got a chance.</p><p>“Gordon, Lavinia!”</p><p>A dark-haired girl marched up to the hat and put it on with a flourish. It barely touched her ears when it yelled, “SLYTHERIN!”</p><p>“Graves, Carmen!”</p><p>Taking a deep breath, Carmen walked up to the stool and gingerly placed the hat on her head. James grinned at her right before the hat covered her eyes. “Hmm, it has been a while since I’ve seen a Graves,” said a small voice in her ear.</p><p>Carmen did her utmost best not to jump in her seat and fall off the stool. “Jumpy, eh? But you have a streak of daring to you. And clever, yes, so clever. And loyal too. So many choices. What to do with you?”</p><p>Without really thinking about it, Carmen pictured Sirius and James laughing with scarlet and gold scarves around their necks and Gryffindor patches ironed on to their robes. “Gryffindor, eh? With your friends? I don’t just sort by friendships, you know,” the hat huffed.</p><p><em>Please, I don’t want to be afraid any more</em>, Carmen thought. <em>They make me feel safe. Brave, even. Like I could take on the world, so long as they were at my back.</em></p><p>“Well, then,” the hat said, “what’s an old hat to argue?”</p><p>“GRYFFINDOR!” the hat shouted to the hall.</p><p>Carmen bounded over to Gryffindor table, almost forgetting to give the hat back to Professor McGonagall in her excitement. Sirius greeted her with a huge hug and the red-heads who greeted him reached over the table to kiss her knuckles like Sirius had when they first met.</p><p>A few names later, the bubbly copper-haired girl, who was apparently named “Kildare, Agatha,” became the next Gryffindor. The next few girls went to Ravenclaw. Then a boy with the unfortunate name of Longbottom joined them in Gryffindor, as did Remus, and the girl after him, who looked a little green in the face. Then another Hufflepuff, followed by three nasty looking Slytherins. </p><p>“Pettigrew, Peter!”</p><p>A nervous, well-fed boy walked up to the hat, hands wringing all the way. Carmen thought he was a lock for Hufflepuff, but the hat stayed on his head for a whole five minutes before crying, “GRYFFINDOR!”</p><p>Peter sat down next to Carmen and she flashed him a small smile before turning her attention back to the sorting as James’s name was called. Carmen crossed her fingers, but she needn’t have worried. The hat had only just brushed against the tips of James’s hair when it shouted, “GRYFFINDOR!”</p><p>James slid into place between Remus and Lily and across from and grinned brightly. From there, there were only a few students whose sortings Carmen paid attention to. “Quirke, Pandora,” a dreamy-eyed girl with long blonde hair danced her way over to Ravenclaw. </p><p>The rude boy, “Snape, Severus,” practically preened when the hat sorted him into Slytherin, which looked rather funny with his admittedly greasy hair. A tall blond with a gleaming prefect's badge welcomed him to the Slytherin table and patted him on the back.</p><p>“Vance, Emmeline” was among the last to be sorted. She went into Slytherin despite her kind eyes and bright smile. A boy a few years older than her hissed at his friends to make space for her and, haltingly, she sat down next to him.</p><p>After the last student was sorted and McGonagall rolled up her scroll, the man seated in the middle of the professor’s table stood up and beamed down at the students, arms open wide. “Welcome! Welcome to a new year at Hogwarts! Before we begin our banquet, I want to welcome all of our new students. It is my fondest wish that all of you find a home here at Hogwarts and that you enjoy the time you spend here. May Hogwarts be a constant for you, a place of safety and familiarity in an increasingly uncertain world. Now, I have only a few more words before we eat, and here they are: Bibble! Gubbins! Flibbertigibbet! Thank you!”</p><p>Everyone laughed and cheered as he sat back down. Carmen just kept staring at him with a cautious sort of curiosity. “Who is that?” she asked.</p><p>One of the red-heads across the table answered, “Why, that’s Dumbledore, the Headmaster. He’s the greatest wizard alive!”</p><p>Carmen thought she had heard that name before, in one of Grandad’s letters, and not in a complimentary way. Shaking her head, she looked down at the table and found the golden plates suddenly full of food. Roasted meats, sausages, steak, at least three different kinds of potato, several meat pies, roasted vegetables, peas, carrots. Carmen filled her plate high with all her favourites. </p><p>“I’m Fabian Prewett, by the way,” the boy said. He pointed to the identical-looking boy on his right. “This here’s my twin, Gideon. We had a chance to be prefects this year, but that would’ve deprived the world of our combined brilliance. Because, see, if one of us took ‘em up on the offer, the other would’ve been turned down.”</p><p>Carmen hummed in response. Down from the twins, she heard James laugh. “Slow down, Remus, it’s not going away! And put some vegetables on your plate!”</p><p>Sure enough, Remus’ plate was filled with every kind of meat the table offered, and not a vegetable in sight. James dished some grilled asparagus onto Remus’ plate along with a few roast potatoes for good measure. Both boys looked chagrined when they realized they had drawn the attention of the rest of the table. And then, in the most sarcastic way possible, Remus skewered an asparagus spear with his fork and ate it, pointedly glaring at James all the while.</p><p>As soon as Carmen took her first bite of lamb, she realized how long it had been since her sandwich-and-candy lunch. Between bites, the green-faced girl introduced herself as Mary and apologized to Agatha for almost getting sick on the train. Agatha waved her off, intent on forgetting the incident entirely.</p><p>“C-can you pass the carrots?” Peter asked.</p><p>Carmen couldn’t help but glance down at the boy’s nearly empty plate. “Of course, yeah. You need anything else?”</p><p>“P-pie and mash, please,” Peter started talking as Carmen poked at Sirius to get him to pass the dishes down, “I, I didn’t know where I would end up, but I n-never expected to get into Gryffindor. My mum was a Hufflepuff, you see and my da was a Ravenclaw. My cousins went to Slytherin – Mum’s side, not Da’s, you won’t find a Pettigrew in Slytherin – and both my sisters went to Ravenclaw but I-I don’t think I’m smart enough for that –”</p><p>“Peter! Peter!”</p><p>“Your pie and mash?”</p><p>Carmen pointed down at Peter’s plate that she’d filled while he rambled on. “Thank you,” he said quietly.</p><p>A girl with ashy blonde hair, who looked a year or so older then them, leaned over and said kindly, “I’m sure the hat wouldn’t have put you here if you couldn’t hack it.”</p><p>“What about you?” Peter asked.</p><p>“Hmm?”</p><p>“What about your family?”</p><p>Carmen shrugged, unsure of how much she wanted to say. “Complicated.”</p><p>Thankfully, Peter didn’t ask for an explanation, instead choosing to focus on his food, like most of the other students.</p><p>When everyone had eaten their fill – including Remus, who could put away a lot more food than his rail-thin figure might suggest – the food disappeared from their plates and Dumbledore stood up again. “A few more minutes of your time please before we retire for the night. The caretaker, Mr Filch, has asked me to remind you that no magic is permitted in the corridors between classes. As always, the forest on the castle grounds is forbidden to all students. </p><p>“Students should also be aware that Professor Sprout has successfully transplanted a Whomping Willow onto the castle grounds. I must insist that everyone stay clear of it if they wish to avoid grievous injury. The tree is most violent.</p><p>“The dates for Quidditch try-outs will be posted in your common rooms by the end of this week. Anyone who wishes to try out for their house team should contact Madam Hooch. Finally, I want to welcome our new Defence Against the Dark Arts professor, Millicent Hitchens.” A stout woman with short, grey hair and a scar on her right cheek stood up at the high table and gave a small bow. “Now, off to bed with you,” Dumbledore said, waving his arms to the door.</p><p>Carmen tried to pay attention as the Gryffindor prefects led them through the castle to Gryffindor Tower, but she just felt so warm and sleepy and she ended up leaning on James for support as they walked up a maze of ever-shifting stairs.</p><p>Once in the tower, they had some trouble sorting out the dorm situation. Their trunks had already been moved into their rooms and the girls' dorms looked like someone was playing musical chairs, the way the first years ran from room to room until they found their things. Carmen ended up in the same dorm as Agatha, Lily, and the green-faced girl, Mary. Lily walked over to her and held out her hand. “I’m sorry again about Sev.”</p><p>“You don’t need to keep apologizing for him. Besides, it looks like we’re stuck together for a while so if I’m still put out, I should get over it, yeah?”</p><p>Carmen shook Lily’s hand and she laughed. “I guess so.”</p>
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